BRUSCHETTA CHEESE BALL
Ingredients
Cheese Ball
- 1 5.2 oz. Boursin Garlic & Fine Herbs Cheese
- 1 8 oz. brick Cream Cheese at room temperature
- ¼ cup Sour Cream
- 1 cup Shredded mozzarella cheese
- ½ cup Freshly finely grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 2 Roma tomatoes, chopped with seeds and flesh removed
- ½ cup Cup sun-dried tomatoes (packed in oil), chopped, rinsed, dried
- ½ cup Basil Leaves Chopped
- 1 TBSP Balsamic Vinegar
- ½ tsp Garlic Powder
- ¼ tsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
- ¼ tsp Salt
- ⅛ tsp Pepper
PANKO SUN-DRIED TOMATO COATING
- ¾ cup Panko Breadcrumbs
- 1 TBSP Butter
- 3 TBSP Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Diced, Rinsed, Dried
- 3 TBSP Chopped Basil Leaves
GARNISH
- 1 Roma Tomato (chopped)
- 1 TBSP Fresh Basil
DIPPERS
- 1-2 Baguettes Sliced Into ½ inch slices (toasted)
- Olive Oil
Instructions
- Cheese Ball: Add all of the Cheese Ball ingredients to a large bowl and mix with a spatula until well combined. Drop mixture onto a large piece of plastic wrap, cover tightly, and shape into a ball. Freeze for 1-2 hours or chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours up to 24 hours.
- Panko- Sun-Dried Tomato Coating: While the cheese ball is chilling, prepare Coating by melting butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Stir in panko and continue to stir constantly until panko is golden. Cool completely then stir in sun-dried tomatoes and basil.
- Assemble: When ready to serve, remove cheese ball from freezer/fridge, roll in toasted panko mixture, pressing to adhere, until evenly coated. Garnish with fresh tomatoes and fresh basil. Serve with baguette slices and crackers (optional).
- Baguette slices: Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line 1-2 large baking sheet with baguette slices. Brush top sides of slices with olive oil and flip all the slices over so the olive oil is SIDE DOWN on the baking sheet. Bake for 6 to 8 minutes or until slightly golden around the edges.
Notes
Total Time does not include chilling as this will vary upon individual.
- DO NOT microwave cream cheese to soften it or it will be too soft and hard to form into a ball.
- You just want the firm outer part of the tomato so when you cut your tomatoes, scoop out the inside flesh and seeds so all that remains is the firm part – we don’t want the extra moisture in our cheese ball. After you chop your tomatoes, pat them dry once more with a paper towel
- Measure the sun-dried tomatoes, then rinse them and squeeze them dry before chopping.
- You can either prepare 1 baguette and supplement with crackers (or Garlic Parmesan Pretzel Crisps are amazing!!) or prepare 2 baguettes and not use crackers/pretzels.
- This Bruschetta Cheese Ball also makes an incredible spread for sandwiches.
PREP AHEAD
- The cheese ball can be chilled without the coating for 24 hours.
- For the crispiest make-ahead coating, toast the panko and store it in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Chop the tomatoes and basil up to 24 hours ahead of time and store in separate containers in the refrigerator. Combine the coating ingredients right before coating the cheese ball.